This Song: Sunflower Bean

Summary

Inspiration can come from anywhere. For Brooklyn-based Sunflower Bean the source of that inspiration spans four decades: Brian Wilson (“He’s as good as Mozart”), Devo (“The perfect band”), Beach Fossils (“The punk home-recording CD), and Tonstartssbanht (“It’s impossible to describe”) all help to form this band’s direction and sound. Hear the band tell Elizabeth tales of musical discovery, club scenes with a social conscience, what makes a perfect combination of art and commerce, and the attraction of listening to a musical genius’ decent into darkness.

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Check out Sunflower Bean’s Studio 1A performance on VuHaus

Listen to Sunflower Bean’s Studio 1A performance

Download the live version of Sunflower Bean’s “Come On” as part of our Song of the Day Feature

Listen to songs from Episode 49 of This Song

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May 29, 2019

This Song: The Bishops on “Soundtrack to My Life” by Kid Cudi

Our May Artist of the Month- The Bishops explain that hearing “Soundtrack to My Life” by Kid Cudi for the first time as middle schoolers changed what they thought hip-hop music could be.

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May 22, 2019

This Song: Thea Wood on “Bad Reputation” by Joan Jett

Writer and entrepreneur Thea Wood describes how hearing Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation” while watching the documentary of the same name reignited her passion for music and inspired her to create the “Backstage Chats With Women in Music” podcast as well as the the Backstage Chats Foundation.

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May 8, 2019

This Song: The Teeta on “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen

Austin rapper The Teeta breaks down all the reasons he loves “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen and how it influenced the direction he took on “Rain” from his latest record Teeta World.

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May 1, 2019

This Song: Pocket Sounds

Austin’s Pocket Sounds is the solo project of singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and arranger Mike St Clair. Listen as he describes how hearing Dionne Warwick’s version of the Burt Bacharach/Hal David classic “Do You Know the Way to San Jose” at a kiddie pool party inspired him to meld the classical, jazz, pop and rock parts of himself, and influenced his new song “Radio Song.”

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April 26, 2019

This Song: Citizen Cope

Citizen Cope details how his emotional connections to legends such as Randy Newman and Trouble Funk aided his understanding of the powerful energy that music can have. Cope then goes on to discusses how his experiences of the last seven years led him to the songs on his latest record “Heroin and Helicopters.”

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April 24, 2019

This Song: GRiZ on Disney’s “Fantasia”

Producer and multi-instrumentalist GRiZ explains how seeing Disney’s “Fanstasia”as a child helped him understand music’s ability to take the listener on an emotional journey and piqued his interest in making music on the computer. The listen as he explains why he wanted to explore his own complex emotional journey on his latest record “Ride Waves.”

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April 17, 2019

This Song: Ian Graham from The Well on “Ocean Size” by Jane’s Addiction

Ian Graham, guitarist, songwriter and singer for the Austin psych metal band The Well, describes how hearing “Ocean Size” by Jane’s Addiction when he was a kid showed him how powerfully music could convey a feeling by transporting him “to somebody else’s movie.”

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April 10, 2019

This Song: Cautious Clay On “B.O.B” by Outkast

Cautious Clay explains how the video for Outkast’s “B.O.B” blew his mind as a 7 year old and tells us how that experience continues to have a profound impact on his own work, especially on his new project “Table of Context.”

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